Tesla Model S so safe it keeps crazy drivers committing extreme wrecks alive

A couple weeks ago another Tesla Model S burned, this time following a wreck in Mexico.  Some jumped to the conclusion that this proves electric cars are dangerous after all.  Instead, the accident actually demonstrates how safe the Model S is, and that the driver of that car put it into an extreme extreme wreck from which he was able to walk away.

Just how extreme was this accident?  While the accident picture says a lot – suspension system badly mangled, the front end mushed up, but the passenger compartment was intact.

As much as that picture says, it doesn’t tell the whole story.  During yesterday’s Q3 2013 conference call with analysts, Tesla Motors CEO Elon Musk had a chance to talk about the accident.  By his description it was one of those extra-extreme accidents where it’s a miracle anybody even survives – but in this case not only did the occupants survive, they were in good enough a condition to flee the scene.

What Musk said is: “The car actually sheared something like 17 feet of concrete wall, THEN went through a concrete wall, THEN smashed into a tree.”

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Is the Model S safe or unsafe?  Seems to me this proves it’s a very safe car, to go through all that and have the occupants survive.

About David Herron

David Herron is a writer and software engineer living in Silicon Valley. He primarily writes about electric vehicles, clean energy systems, climate change, peak oil and related issues. When not writing he indulges in software projects and is sometimes employed as a software engineer. David has written for sites like PlugInCars and TorqueNews, and worked for companies like Sun Microsystems and Yahoo.

About David Herron

David Herron is a writer and software engineer living in Silicon Valley. He primarily writes about electric vehicles, clean energy systems, climate change, peak oil and related issues. When not writing he indulges in software projects and is sometimes employed as a software engineer. David has written for sites like PlugInCars and TorqueNews, and worked for companies like Sun Microsystems and Yahoo.

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